Scotiabank Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Stock

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) had its target price increased by stock analysts at Scotiabank from $32.00 to $33.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the stock. Scotiabank’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 2.87% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $36.25 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Wedbush began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Monday, August 19th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Properties Realty Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.44.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE EPRT opened at $33.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 5.59, a current ratio of 5.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 52 week low of $23.42 and a 52 week high of $34.51. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $33.16 and its 200 day moving average is $30.53. The company has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.53, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.37.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.16). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 46.00%. The firm had revenue of $117.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.73 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.42 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 27,817 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.33, for a total value of $899,323.61. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 446,076 shares in the company, valued at $14,421,637.08. The trade was a 5.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EPRT. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 88,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,369,000 after buying an additional 5,672 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the 1st quarter worth about $290,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 31.4% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 157,731 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,205,000 after buying an additional 37,729 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 116.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 23,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $646,000 after buying an additional 3,722 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc, a real estate company, acquires, owns, and manages single-tenant properties in the United States. The company leases its properties to middle-market companies, such as restaurants, car washes, automotive services, medical and dental services, convenience stores, equipment rental, entertainment, early childhood education, grocery, and health and fitness on a long-term basis.